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Nanaimo man wanted for allegedly scamming women; police looking for other victims

Feb 28, 2018 | 11:46 AM

NANAIMO — A Canada-wide warrant was issued for a Nanaimo man accused of defrauding multiple women.

Nanaimo RCMP said Jordan Shepherd, 34, is wanted on at least seven fraud charges related to alleged scams between February and August 2017 in Nanaimo, Ladysmith and New Westminster. Police also believe there could be more victims and are asking them to come forward.

It’s alleged Shepherd, who sometimes uses the name Dave Rofter, targeted women in their mid-20s to early 30s, often meeting them online through dating websites like Plenty of Fish or social media.

Mounties said Shepherd would claim to be unable to access his bank account and ask women to deposit cheques for him. They would typically be worth $1,000 to $1,600 and were on a business account called On the Rocks Surveying. After the money was deposited and withdrawn, he would then allegedly disappear, leaving the women to discover the business and account did not exist.

“We’ve got to put a stop to this guy, he’s just ruining lives,” Cst. Gary O’Brien told NanaimoNewsNOW. “He’s causing considerable financial hardship for a lot of people. He’s taking his web of lies and deceit from Nanaimo to the Lower Mainland and we fully suspect he’s still doing it.”

O’Brien said police want to hear from other potential victims to help further their ongoing investigation. 

“Some probably weren’t coming forward because they thought they were alone. Well, they’re not,” O’Brien said. “Mr. Shepherd needs to be held accountable for his actions.”

O’Brien said some of the women who fell prey to Shepherd took to social media to warn others of his actions.

A September 2017 Facebook post by Denise Allick, which was shared more than 9,000 times, claimed Shepherd “Completely drained my account and put three fraudulent checks through my account while I was at work totalling $3,275, frauded (sic) me over $5,000.” The post shared pictures of Shepherd from Plenty of Fish with the username JasonDave85 saying he was in Tofino.

Court records showed Shepherd was arrested for allegedly driving while prohibited on Nov. 16, 2017 in Ucluelet. He failed to appear for his Feb. 5 court date, records showed.

Shepherd, a former Dover Bay Secondary student, may be in the Lower Mainland, police said. He’s 6’1″, around 230 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes. He has a tattoo of a Crown on his right wrist and another of “No Regrets” on his right upper arm.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.

 

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—Note to readers. This is an updated article to include quotes from Nanaimo RCMP.